College Sport: Westlake looks across the bridge

North Harbour’s school rugby giant thinks its teams can do better in the tougher Auckland competition.

The Westlake Boys High School First XV rugby team perform a haka before taking a midwinter swim at Takapuna Beach. Photo / Brett Phibbs

North Harbour's top rugby school is to move several of its junior grades to Auckland next season - a decision that has upset the union's school circles.

Westlake Boys' High School is seeking to shift up to four of its teams across the bridge in a bid to get a higher standard of rugby for players.

The First XV will continue to play in the North Harbour 1A competition.

Perennial favourites Westlake face close rivals Rosmini in tomorrow's final for the third year in a row.

In recent seasons Westlake, a rugby giant in its own backyard, has struggled to cope with the winner of the Auckland 1A competition in the Blues regional playoff, and has lost some promising players over the bridge.

Westlake's juniors will get better rugby in Auckland, where the Auckland 1A is a more exacting, intense competition than the Shore version.

But they would play for North Harbour rather than Auckland in representative games.

There is also the ongoing discussion about a possible greater Auckland-wide rugby competition in various grades, and perhaps even ultimately at First XV level.

Several college sports, notably cricket and football, compete under one banner at premier level, and are not split along North Harbour-Auckland lines.

"Rugby is a very important sport for us and we take it seriously," he said. "This would of course test our competitiveness and ability.

"But we wouldn't want to go alone. We enjoy playing in the North Harbour competition, and we want to be competing at the highest level. It would be nice if there was a city-wide competition."

Informal talks led to an approach to the Auckland Secondary Schools Rugby Union. But there was no opening in the Auckland 1A competition, which has had 12 teams for many seasons.

Auckland schools union chairman Jim Lonergan is relaxed about Westlake's plans in principle, saying his organisation is looking at one grade across the three regions next year and expanding other grades, while generally seeking to boost stagnating junior numbers.

But he did not envisage any immediate changes to the 1A competition.

"We are by far the biggest first XV competition in the country," he said. "We'd be loath to do damage to that."

The proposed Westlake move would have to be ratified before both schools' unions have their annual meetings in October.

Dallow has concerns about travel issues and the depth in junior grades if there was a city-wide competition. But Dallow says there is little the North Harbour schools union can do without a constitutional overhaul.

Rosmini, which some say would have every reason to try to follow Westlake across the bridge, has no plans for such a move.

"We've been very clear from the get-go. We've hitched our wagon to North Harbour, and have no inclination to go over the other side," said principal Tom Gerrard.

Gerrard said the notion that players have to be in Auckland to further their careers is false.